Some private university owners at an exchange of views on Tuesday iterated their demand for revoking the government move to promulgate the Private University Ordinance 2007.

They also demanded that the government should exempt private universities from tax as they are not-for-profit institutions.

The owners teamed up as the Association of Private Universities of Bangladesh blamed the education ministry officials for not heeding the recommendations the owners earlier made on the proposed ordinance.

'The association feels that the existing laws enacted in 1992 are enough to regulate private universities activities and there is not need for new laws in this regard,' the association's chairman M A Kashem said at the National Press Club discussion.

The interim government is going to frame the ordinance without consultation with private universities and this is not right, they said. There are 51 private universities with more than 1.24 lakh students enrolled, but there are widespread allegations that most of them frequently compromise on quality.

The BNP-led alliance government in late 2002 initiated to amend the Private University Act 1992, but the move was aborted in the face of opposition from some influential owners.

The caretaker government in March 2007 initiated to formulate the Private University Ordinance 2007 and it was sent to the law ministry for final scrutiny after approval of the council of advisers.

The private universities owners at the discussion said some of the rules in the proposed ordinance would hamper the further establishment of private universities.